"I am happy. It was my first WorldTour race as a leader" - 19-year old Lenny Martinez impresses at Volta a Catalunya as Groupama - FDJ prepare their next leader

The Volta Ciclista a Catalunya offered an exciting battle between Primoz Roglic and Remco Evenepeol for spectators. However, there were also some riders who were new to the race and, despite not achieving any victories, were still able to have a successful tour.

"I am happy. It was my first WorldTour race as a leader,” Lenny Martinez said on his team’s social media. He continues, “I learned a lot this week, with the experience of Matthieu [Ladagnous] but also of the other teammates who all believed in me. Thanks to them.”

His top performance came in the form of a sixth place finish in the fifth stage, and he ultimately concluded the tour in 12th place in GC and third in the Youth classification. “I was able to live up to expectations, I was in good shape in this Volta a Catalunya. Today, I tried to attack on the Montjuïc circuit, but it was very hard to see. I had a better feeling every day and that's great.”

Given that it was his first time, he is very pleased with his overall performance and confident that this will provide him with the necessary momentum to perform well throughout the season. “We are close to our goal of a top-10 overall. I was able to learn a lot this week with Lada and all the team-mates. They really had confidence in me and I thank the team again. This is my first WorldTour race as a leader, so I am happy that I was able to meet the expectations and perform well. I was also happy to see that the feeling got better and better as the week went on,” concluded Martinez.